Yoel Romero claims commission cut off his weight cut, still wants title fight

Yoel Romero claims commission cut off his weight cut, still wants title fight

Would-be UFC middleweight title contender Yoel Romero appeared to blame the Illinois athletic commission for his miss on the scale.

After getting booed at the ceremonial weigh-ins for UFC 225, Romero told UFC commentator Joe Rogan he was in the process of cutting weight when the commission stopped him.

“I needed two hours, and the commission would only give me one,” said Romero (13-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC), who this morning officially came in two-tenths of a pound over the 185-pound limit for a fight against champ Robert Whittaker (19-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC) on Saturday at United Center in Chicago. “It was the commission’s decision.”

At the pay-per-view event’s official weigh-ins, Romero came in at 186 pounds, a full pound heavier than the 185-pound mark required of middleweight title fights. He was then given two additional hours to cut weight, and was heavy on his second try (via YouTube):

After his second miss, Romero, who missed weight for his previous bout, an interim title fight against ex-champ Luke Rockhold at UFC 221, was seen leaving the official weigh-ins hunched slightly over and wincing as a teammate assisted him.

Despite the miss, Whittaker accepted the fight, and the UFC announced the headliner will still happen as a five-round non-title bout. Romero will be fined 20 percent of his purse, though it’s unclear if the fine will apply only to his “show” purse, or his entire purse.

Questions to officials from the Illinois athletic commission, which regulates Saturday’s event at United Center in Chicago, were directed to a public information officer with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, which oversees the commission.

In an interview after the ceremonial weigh-ins, an angry Romero doubled down on his stance against the commission and hoped the UFC still would put the title on the line (via Twitter).